Put the Pieces Back Together
by Genkai Shihan
Summary: In the aftermath of Alcatraz, the former mutant Raven goes in search of someone, but why? What does she want with him, and how are they coping with their nearly broken relationship? Eventually MagnetoxMystique. Updated, now rated M for lemon.
1. The Hunt

A/N: Hey everyone! I've been wanting to create an X-Men story since the 2nd one came out, but I was lazy and never started one. After watching X3, I got my lazy butt into gear, ha ha.

Yeah, as you should know, I don't own anything.

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He wasted no time to go into hiding as soon as the battle at Alcatraz was lost, and he lost his powers. It was an act of such cowardice, hiding from the humans, and even other mutants like the X-Men, but he had no choice. He was powerless to defend himself, with his power over metal lost forever. A cold fear gripped his stomach. There would be many people hunting for him, and he had no way of defending himself. The great Magneto was a broken man.

Careful not to withdraw too much money from one of his many foreign bank accounts, he secured enough money to take a series of buses to the east coast. Flying or taking a train was out of the question, too much security, and they were bound to recognize him. They probably had his picture everywhere for god's sake. He wore a flat cap low, just in case. Without his metal helmet and cape, he could be someone's beloved grandfather, he mused. He was as helpless as a doddering old fool anyway.

Settling in upper Pennsylvania, he found a dingy apartment for cheap. Everything in it was plastic. It was another act of cowardice, he knew, but he couldn't stand the sight of metal. Plastic lamps, plastic utensils, everything. He even bought cheap food that didn't require too much preparation, like using a metal skillet. Having to use metal things, or just seeing metal, made him lament the power that he'd lost. The part of him he'd lost.

In a few months he could upgrade his living quarters, but he had to keep low for now, in case the government was still trying to catch him. No, he was certain they still were, with all the trouble he'd caused in recent years. He was probably going to spend the rest of his life living in fear of being caught, and if caught, he'd spend the rest of his life in prison. Either way, he would be alone for the rest of his life. He had become a coward without the use of his powers, and he was sickened by it. All it had taken was the touch of a needle, four to be exact, to rob him of his birthright. It had taken away his identity. Nevertheless, he assimilated into the society of humans that he hated the most.

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After the battle at Alcatraz, Raven Darkholme, formerly Mystique of The Brotherhood of Mutants, scoured every newspaper, every news network, for information on Erik. She had to know what happened. To her joy, the mutant boy whose powers had provided the cure was missing, which meant no more of the cure could be created, stealing the powers of other mutants like it had done to her. The only other thing she knew was that there was a huge number of deaths, but they couldn't even begin to count how many died because they couldn't find all the bodies. She wondered what mutant was able to do that, but she suspected it probably had something to do with the X-Men, who had in fact intervened like they had done in all of Erik's other attempts at mutant liberation.

After weeks of scouring newspapers, she had not found out anything about Erik, whether he was alive or dead. She decided to visit the X-Men, because they probably had the whole story. She had to find out what happened to Erik.

Getting there was the easy part. She hopped a flight to New York, where Xavier's school was located, and managed to get a taxi to drop her off right in front of the gates. On the plane she realized that this whole trip could be for nothing, that they might tell her Erik was dead after all, or they might refuse to tell her anything, turning her away without a second thought. But she had to try anyway.

The mutant Rogue greeted her at the entrance, but gave her odd looks when she had asked to see the Professor. Could it be that she knew who she was? She was certain that Rogue had never seen her in her human form, let alone the rest of the X-Men for that matter. She doubted they even knew her slave name, Raven. She shrugged and followed the young mutant inside. Instead of taking her straight to the professor, she made her sit in an office and told her to wait one second. In a few minutes, the woman known as Storm entered, followed by a blue man. She recognized him from some of the newspapers. He was Hank McCoy, Secretary of Mutant Affairs in the White House. She wondered what on earth he was doing at a place like this, but was barely interested, for she only saw his name in passing on her many tries to look for Erik in the news.

"Miss Raven, why are you looking for the Professor?" Mystique looked down at her feet, feigning timidity.

"I need him to help me find Magneto," she said. What was this? Storm and Hank both looked down, saddened. Hank suddenly spoke, quietly.

"Professor Xavier is dead."

About to reply, she stopped when the mutant Wolverine walked in. He sniffed, and, like an animal, growled when he recognized her. "What are you doing here Mystique?"

The room suddenly became very tense, and she felt like the room got colder once they found out who she was. Or rather, who she had been before the cure. "I'm sorry _Mystique_, but we can't tell you where he is," Storm spat.

"Why not!" This was outrageous. "I'm not looking for him for The Brotherhood, I'm not with them anymore."

"Then why are you looking for him," asked Wolverine.

She paused, looking at each of their faces in her rage. "To kill him. I don't care if I have to use one of those ridiculous plastic knives, but I will kill him." She stood up, putting her hands on her hips, daring them to object.

"That won't be necessary, my dear," Hank said. "Magneto was hit by the Cure at the battle of Alcatraz."

It took a full four seconds for his words to sink in. "What!" Her mouth dropped open. The great Magneto, human! How could this be? So maybe killing him wouldn't be as difficult as she had first anticipated. Her last thought was of disgust. She had given up her powers, her life, for this man, and he had thrown her out like trash. And he still lost his powers anyway. "Thanks for the lack of information, I'll be leaving now, so you don't have to hold your breath." She strode out, not even looking back.

Sitting outside, she felt much less confident than she'd been inside. He could be anywhere in the United States by now, so where could she start?

"Hey Mystique, can I talk to you?" Turning around, she saw Wolverine had come out looking for her.

"What do you want?" She saw he looked uncomfortable, he kept scratching his nose with one finger, and shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Why do you want to kill Magneto so badly?" There, he hit the mark.

"Because I got hit with the cure trying to protect him, and he threw me out like yesterday's garbage," she snapped. "I gave up my life, my mutation for him, and he just walked away." It really hurt coming out and saying it to another person, but she knew it had to come out sometime. She felt Wolverine put his hand on her shoulder.

"Magneto is living in Erie, in upper Pennsylvania. We've been keeping tabs on him." She had a start! "Oh, and he goes to play chess when it's sunny outside," he said, scratching his nose again.

"Thank you," she said gratefully.

"I would've liked to kill him myself." She laughed.

"Sorry but I get him first, I know you'll understand." This brought a smile out of him. With a wave, she got up and walked away.

Traveling to Erie had cost her the rest of the money she had. A few stolen wallets later, she had enough to pay a month's rent on a small dingy apartment, which was located to right next to a park, which had plenty of chessboards. There, she prepared to stalk it every day looking for Erik. There was only one other park in the area, and she planned to visit that park after she made her rounds at the one next to her temporary home. She had also managed to procure a job as a cashier at a local drugstore. It didn't pay much, but it was enough for now. Now, all she had to do next was find him.

The next two weeks, however, were nonstop rain, meaning that only the most faithful of joggers went to the park. After a handful of overcast days that followed, there was finally a sunny, bright day. It was a perfect day for the hunt.

After an hour of looking through that park, she gave up and went to the other one on the other side of town. No luck there either. She developed a routine doing this. In the morning she would stalk the park closest to her apartment for a good hour, then she took a bus to the other side of town, where she would wait to see if she noticed anyone peculiar playing chess. After that, she took another bus back where she double checked the park again, then got something to eat and went to her job. This continued for about a week. Then one day, however, her routine abruptly changed.

"Hello Mystique."

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A/N: Well, what did you think? I know, I know, I'm evil and whatnot for ending it here. I'll update soon if you guys want me to continue this. 


	2. Just a Pawn

_Author's Note:_ Here's the much anticipated second chapter! Okay, okay, not that much anticipated, but I still couldn't wait to get it done. It has the certain person you've all been waiting for! Our favorite master of magnetism!

**Disclaimer:** I own X-Men and everything in it. **NOT**. If I did I'd be living in luxury, and would hire gorgeous males to wait on me. Nope, don't own it. Oh, and if you're looking for a good song, go listen to "I Can't Make Me" by Butterfly Boucher. I wrote the both chapters to this. So go listen!

**Chapter 2**

She whipped around at the speaker, startled. She had been turning to leave the park and catch the bus back to her apartment when someone sitting at a table near her spoke her name. It was him. Magneto. Then she saw why she had overlooked him so easily. He wore a wrinkled, dirty beige coat, and a flat cap that he wore low. She knew he wasn't going to be playing chess in full cape and helmet, but she had thought he'd wear something a little less... ordinary.

"Are you surprised?" He asked softly. She sat down in the seat opposite of him. Of course she was surprised. Had she just walked past him all week not noticing anything? "I've seen you walking around for the past three days, Mystique," He moved a pawn forward, leaving her to make a move.

"You noticed and haven't said a word?" Part of her mentally kicked herself. That meant he'd been at the park for three straight days, and she hadn't even noticed. Where had her old skills gone? Another part of her realized that she had been looking for Magneto, when it was Erik here instead. He looked different, yet exactly the same. The way he held himself was different, and he wasn't brimming with confidence anymore, but he looked the same as ever, given a few extra lines on his face she hadn't remembered seeing before.

"Of course I noticed, but I wanted to see how long it would take for you to notice me. Then I just got impatient." He said with a small smile.

"Don't play games with me Erik," she said in a warning tone. She would not stand for his tricks or charm this time.

"I'm sorry Mystique," he said, his smile drooping.

"First of all, you're not sorry, and second, Mystique is dead now." She refused to touch the chess pieces or to take part in his game, so he moved a pawn for her.

"But you are sitting right here in front of me, are you not?" He said, moving another of his pieces forward.

"No, Raven the _human_ is sitting in front of you, Mystique died for you that day in the police trailer," she spat, crossing her arms in front of her. There was no way he could manipulate the truth about that, or get out of what was owed for it.

He sighed. "I admit, what I did that day was wrong, but-"

"Wrong! You left me there to die, and don't you dare say otherwise! I gave up everything for you, and all I got was a 'sorry you're not with us anymore!" She fumed. She had raised her voice yelling at him, and was getting a few peculiar looks from those closest to them. But she didn't care. She had to get it all out now. Picking up a pawn, she pointed to it. "This was all I ever was to you, a pawn, wasn't I?" She threw it down in disgust.

"No, you're mistaken." He said firmly. "You were never a pawn, Mystique, never." Oh, how she wanted to believe him. But only the pawns got thrown away, as she clearly had.

"Then why did I get thrown out the second after I sacrificed myself for you, hmm?" She wanted to know why she had been hurt so bad, why he had hurt her so much after doing what she thought of as a true act of loyalty. "And don't you dare try to say anything about how you were protecting me by tossing me away," she accused as she saw him open his mouth.

"Think about this, Mystique, what would you have done in the battle against the humans?" He folded his hands and used them to prop his chin up, staring at her with those deep blue eyes. It made her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"I would have fought!" She cried. And she would have, too. Even if it had cost her her life, she still would have fought for the Brotherhood, even if she wasn't one of them anymore.

"Even though you had lost your powers? Even if all you had left were physical combat skills that would be useless in a combat field where they had long range weapons?"

Damn. As much as she hated to say it, he had a point there. But it didn't change her answer whatsoever. "I would still want to fight," she said, chin high. She was proud of her ability to defend herself. Those skills were not part of her mutation, but part of her survival instinct that had been honed for years.

"I knew you would say that," he said. She thought she detected a hint of ruefulness, but she was probably mistaken. Magneto never regretted his actions if they benefited his cause to reach mutant supremacy. But did Erik?

"I'm guessing that you want to know exactly why I left you before you kill me, am I right?" He said, moving another piece.

"Preferably now, instead of later," she agreed coldly.

"May I suggest we get a cup of coffee in my apartment while I talk?"

"Sure, I don't really care," she said.

He smiled, looking down at the chess pieces. Moving one last piece, he had arranged the game so that her queen had come up to take his king. Coldly, she swept all the pieces off the table, and watched as he placed them back in his bag.

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Erik saw the disgust in her eyes when she walked in with him, seeing his dingy living space, but he was glad she didn't comment. He motioned for her to sit down on one of the chairs while he went to make the coffee. He could use it, the air had gotten a chill while they were talking. Walking back into the room with two cups of cheap coffee, he saw she was checking out his apartment.

"Very...homey," she said awkwardly, sitting down again on one of the threadbare chairs. Handing her a cup, he sat down in the seat opposite of her.

"I didn't buy the furniture, it came with the place," he said.

"I noticed," she said, picking a piece of lint off one of the chair arms. She sipped the coffee and grimaced. It was bitter.

After a minute of silence, Erik spoke up. "I was scared Mystique," he said softly.

"What!" Mystique spluttered, coughing on the coffee that had gone down wrong. It was not a pleasant experience.

"I acted rashly, and what I did was so harsh, but all I could see before me was the mortal form, not the person, and I didn't realize that the naked human who was in front of me was still Mystique inside."

"It still doesn't change what you did," she said, jaw set. She would _not_ let him smooth talk his way out of his deserved punishment. But a small part of her cringed at killing him now. If he were still Magneto she would have no problem killing him, she would do it without a second thought, but for some reason, now that he was just Erik Lensherr, she had a hard time imagining killing this defenseless, weak man.

"And that's why I'm ready to die," he said simply. Setting the ceramic cup on a cheap plastic coaster, he reached over and turned on one of the plastic lamps, as darkness began to fall. "I'd prefer if you made it quick, but I know I deserve much worse. Ever since Alcatraz, I've been waiting for you to come and set right the wrong I've done unto you."

He knew she had come to kill him, yet he was unafraid. It was the final weight that tipped the scale of her judgment. Looking at her watch, she realized the last bus that went to her apartment was coming soon. Getting up, she set down her own mug and put on the jacket she had set on the back of the chair. "I'd better go if I'm going to catch my bus, my shift at the drugstore is going to start in an hour." She was almost at the door before he spoke up.

"So you're not going to kill me?"

"Not yet," she said, walking out the door.

That night behind the counter of Sherman's pharmacy and corner store, she pondered her action. She couldn't kill him. Why? She had every right to, and he had even said he deserved it. So why not? She was forced to abandon her train of thought as a string of customers came up, and they kept her busy until her shift ended, leaving her no time for pondering in between. But laying in bed that night, she had plenty of time to think over what she'd done and why she couldn't do it. Why she couldn't do it _yet_.

_Author's Note:_ Oh, I love to leave readers hanging! It must be one of my favorite pasttimes. My friend is convinced I'm going to turn this into shameless smut. Here was our online conversation:

Me: she came there to kill him, you know  
Me: with a SPORK  
Friend: I'm sure she just wanted to take him right there and then  
Me: now who has the dirty mind?  
Friend: Not me, I'm not the one writing this story

See what I mean? And he is so right. I am going to turn this into shameless smut, but not _yet_. Even though your poor author is restraining the urge to have them just go at each other like rabbits. Hehe.


	3. Bad Experiences

Chapter 3

Author's note: I would like to apologize to Lynx Rider and AngelofSnow. I didn't realize I had borrowed material from their stories and integrated them into my own. They're small details, but nevertheless, they're there. My story also seems so alike many others on this site. That will end now, hopefully. Again, I'm sorry for this mistake I've made, so please don't think less of me because of this!

My friend made a Magneto (and Pyro) music video to the music I suggested to her ("Creep" by Stone Temple Pilots) So thank you Maddogs for using my song suggestion in your wonderful vid!

Okay, on with story!

That night, Raven, formerly Mystique, tossed and turned in her bed. Nightmares plagued her, most of them during her childhood. She saw her father, beating her one night while in his drunken rages. When she started developing blue skin and yellow eyes, her parents kept her out of school and hidden from everyone because they were ashamed of her, and her father often took his frustrations out on her. When he had gotten like this, her mother just looked the other way.

She dreamt the night she ran away, and remembered the reason why. Her father had come at her with a knife, calling her a sin against nature. She hurt him by accident, not knowing whether she killed him or not, and fled. It had been a night of running; the police lights seemed to follow her everywhere, regardless of how fast she went, and dog barks echoed behind her. The dark alleys were her only refuge.

She was on the cold floor of the prison van, naked and scared once again. Looking up into Erik's eyes, she saw pity, disgust and rejection from the only person she ever thought she loved, the only person she was ever capable of loving. Watching him walk away from her, she began to cry, the choked sobs she let out wracking her pale and disgusting body.

Waking with a start, she realized that her pillow was wet. She had never been the type to drool in her sleep, so she didn't know why she had started now. Then she felt her face. It was wet with tears, even worse than if she'd slobbered all over herself. Shaking her head in disgust, she sat up and checked the alarm clock. It was a little after ten o'clock, a little later than her usual starting times. Grumbling about the foolishness of nightmares, she got out of bed and got dressed, hoping to get a coffee from a café down the street. Posing in front of the mirror, she grimaced. Having to get dressed every day was still taking a little getting used to, and frankly, she didn't like having to spend money on clothes.

With a grin, she wondered how people would react if she waltzed out of her apartment naked in this form. Sure, the perverts would have a flipping field day, but at least she'd be noticed. Back when she still had her powers, she could walk around how god made her and she had been sure to get everyone's attention. She loved every moment of it. When she'd wanted to make herself be noticed, she had made herself be _noticed_. On that thought, she exchanged her long sleeved blouse for a low-cut top and jacket. _Much better_. Grabbing a wad of cash, she walked out of her apartment and headed down the street to the local coffee shop.

Sipping a hazelnut latte, she decided to walk past the park on her way back to her apartment. What the hell. She didn't know how she'd spend her time before her shift started at seven o'clock, because most of her day was spent looking for Erik. And now that she'd found him, she didn't want to chat with him for a good while, after what had happened yesterday.

Sitting on a nearby bench, she decided to people watch. It was an interesting way to pass the time. Watching people throughout the park, she tried to guess at what they were doing or thinking. She had been watching a small girl chase a behemoth of a dog, wondering how old she was, when someone caught her attention. For the second time in two days, she choked and spluttered on her coffee. It wasn't an experience she had wanted to repeat, ever. It _burned_. Yet somehow these experiences always happened around Erik. For it was him who was smiling and walking over to her.

_Oh no, oh no, oh no, here he comes,_ She thought. By the time her coffee spasm was over, he had come to sit next to her on the bench.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?" She asked, scowling. She wasn't ready to deal with him again so soon.

"I was just visiting this park. The chessboards are nicer and it seems much more cheerful here for some reason," he said, smiling at her.

"Bullshit. You followed me last night, didn't you?"

"No, I saw you buying groceries here the other day, and saw you go into that apartment complex over there," he pointed to where she was staying.

"But you still came here looking for me," she said.

"Yes, I did." he said simply.

"Why?"

He sat silent for a moment, as if he was contemplating something, then spoke.

"I wanted to ask you something I did not get the opportunity to ask last night." He said softly, leaning towards her. She drew away from him, but still he leaned closer. "You know, don't you? You know that I'm human, weak, and defenseless, yet you hesitate to kill me for all the wrong I've done unto you? Why?"

His bluntness had taken her aback. It wasn't like Erik to be so forthright, he usually toyed with people before getting down to business.

"It's none of your business, Erik." she said, tossing her now empty paper cup into the trash can beside them, using the opportunity to slide further away from him. To her frustration, he slid closer, as if he was unconsciously clinging to her in desperation.

"But it is, and I think I deserve to know why you hesitate to put me out of my misery."

"You don't deserve anything from me." she said coldly. He hung his head slightly, knowing she was right. After what seemed like forever in an uncomfortable silence, he spoke.

"It doesn't change the fact that I want to know."

"Well maybe letting you live in this human shell for the rest of your lonely life would be a fitting punishment Erik, or maybe I felt that the proud and powerful Magneto was the one worthy of my revenge, not the pathetic sack of meat you've become," she spat.

To her surprise (and chagrin), he smiled. "Yes, I've become pathetic. I'll be the first person to tell you."

"You're damn right about that," she smirked. "You're a far cry from the shining figure of hope you used to be for all mutants. And for me," she said softly. Turning to face him angrily, she cried, "I used to look up to you, and I thought that meant something, anything to you!" Tears came unbidden to her eyes, taking him aback. Then she slapped him, _hard_. "I hate you! I put my trust, hopes, and dreams in your hands Erik, and you trampled on them like they were nothing!" Standing up, she hastily left the shocked old man sitting on the bench, still holding his cheek where she hit him.

So far her day was not starting out the way she wanted it. It was already leaving a sour taste in her mouth, and she didn't even eat anything yet.

"Hey buddy," someone called. A middle aged man was walking his dog near the bench. "I think your daughter's pretty upset with you, you should make up with her while you have the chance," he said. Despite everything that had just occurred, Erik laughed.

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Raven had not returned to her apartment. She might see _him_ if she went back, so she just kept walking. It was only when she saw the convenience store she worked at did she realize how far she'd walked. The store was blocks away from her apartment. Looking at her watch, she realized she had quite a few hours before her shift was scheduled to start, so she decided to go to lunch and play it by ear.

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How long Erik sat on the bench, he didn't know. All he knew was that he had to wait for _her_, and he didn't care how long it would take.

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Raven ended up going to work an hour early, something her manager didn't complain about. What the grumpy woman did complain about, however, was her uniform. She had told her that she had spilled coffee on her work shirt, and all of her whites were either dirty or unpacked in a box somewhere. The excuse worked, and she was allowed to wear what she had on for that day, but had

had to promise she would never do something like this again.

After hours of sitting idly behind a register, her shift ended and she caught the bus a block from her apartment. There was a Chinese place close by, so she stopped in and picked up her favorite, General Tso's chicken. Whatever was leftover would be her lunch the next day, she thought happily. With no fancy music player to listen to on the way home, all Raven had were her thoughts. And they kept drifting back to Erik, for some reason, and it was steadily ruining her good mood.

Frankly, she was embarrassed by how she acted on that bench that morning. It was unlike her to cry at all, let alone in public. But cry was one of the things she did now so more than she'd ever done in the past. Part of her felt disgusted by it.

Walking past the park, she noticed something odd, and walked towards the bench she'd sat on hours before. "Hey you, wake up," she said coldly, poking Erik in the stomach. "What are you doing out here, looking like a homeless person?"

"My dear, I _am_ a homeless person," he said tiredly.

"What?" Did she hear that right?

"Can I come inside? I'll tell you everything," he said.

Grudgingly, she agreed and took him home like a mangy dog off the street.

"Somehow my bank accounts are unaccessible, so I was unable to pay the next month's rent, and was evicted," he explained, swallowing a mouthful of rice. 'O how the mighty have fallen,' Raven thought sadly as she saw Erik devour her Chinese food. "It's not easy for someone my age to find a job and start over," he continued, "And I absolutely refuse to work at those despicable Wall-Marts, to become a welcome geezer and waving to teenage mothers and their screaming children."

She had to smile at that. Erik had not lost his sense of humor, that was for sure. Standing up, she put the empty containers in the trash and began filling up the sink to wash the plates. "There isn't much room, but you can have the couch to sleep on," she said, pointing to the cheap but comfortable pull out sofa in the living area. "You can go get your things tomorrow, or whenever, I don't care."

That night in her bed, it was hard to imagine the person she loved and hated most was sleeping on her couch. Hell, her couch was probably better than what he slept on in his previous rat hole of an apartment. Still, she couldn't help but feel there was something amiss. She drifted off into a nice, comforting sleep, unplagued by dreams. _Yet_.

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Hearing light sighs through the thin walls of Mystique's (he refused to call her 'Raven') apartment, he judged that she was asleep already. It was hard to believe he was actually broke, and had actually been given a place to stay by the only woman he had ever loved, and knew that things would never be like they were between them. But he had to try and fix what he'd done. He would never forgive himself otherwise.

Author's note: If you're wondering where the Chinese food thing came from, we had it for dinner tonight, and I, of course, had the General Tso's chicken. It's the best thing EVER. And I found out my brother, hungry after a day playing cards with his friends, finished off what I was hoping to have for lunch tomorrow. (also the wall-marts thing isn't a typo, if you've ever seen that South Park episode, that's where I got that from, hehe)

Also, writing this chapter has made me realize that I need a beta. If anyone would like to volunteer themselves for the job, I would be overjoyed. Really, you have no idea. And I now have 8 days to finish an essay and an annotative bibliography on Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Dammit. At least I finished the book and didn't sparknote it. I take pride in that.


	4. Brass Lion

**A/N:** I was very glad with the good feedback from this, it made me happy. I'm sorry I haven't updated this in awhile, but you can blame my crazy HP fans for that, they made sure my HP fic was at the top of my priority list, ha ha.

**Dedication:** This chapter is dedicated to KumaDaPuma, who is just full of awesomeness.

**Disclaimer:** I own none of this, I'm just doing it for fun.

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A small hooded figure was running through the back alleys, chased by a pair of teens not much older than their prey. It seemed the chase went on forever, alleyway after alleyway, glass crunching under their feet. The figure stopped, suddenly another group of devious looking kids were in front of it's path. One of them stepped forward, flipping open a switchblade and smiling.

"No one's allowed on Blood turf but us." He advanced upon the nervous figure menacingly, the crunch of his sneakers seemed to reverberate off the walls around them.

"I didn't know!" the person beneath the hood cried, looking around nervously. It was no use. The walls seemed to close in around them, with almost no chance of escape.

"After this you will," he smirked. The two at the rear yanked off the hood of their helpless victim. It was a young girl, maybe thirteen, fifteen at the most. But what was different was that her eyes were bright wasp yellow, her skin was a light shade of indigo with small scales going up her face.

"Please don't hurt me," she cried. Tears started flowing from her freakish eyes and down onto her dark scales. Her tears were a shocking crimson, the same color as her hair. The boy who'd yanked off her hood grabbed her arms, while his friend seized her by the hair and tilted her back so that her neck was exposed even further to the leader with the switchblade.

"Aren't we quite the freak," he sneered. "This'll teach you to come onto our turf, you ugly piece of shit." And with that, he went to cut her so bad that she wouldn't forget this lesson.

A few inches before the blade touched her skin, however, it curled like it was made of paper, and the chains the boys wore tightened around their necks.

"I hardly think that will be necessary," a man stated. He'd been walking down the street adjacent to the alley when he heard the commotion. Leaning around the corner, he saw a _blue_ child being terrorized by a gang of kids. "You should learn to respect others, my good fellows." he said, walking up to them. One of the boys had the gall to spit at him. Although it missed his face, it landed on his expensive jacket. He grimaced and tightened the necklace until the boy started to turn a purple color.

"Don't hurt Rufio!" one kid cried. Looking at him, he lessened the tightness of the chain, but flung them all back, where a metal pipe detached itself and pinned them all against the brick wall of the alley.

"If I hear you're threatening children again, I won't play nice next time," he said with a smile. The pipe fell, letting them down. They looked at each other and ran.

"Come my dear, you look like you could use a good meal." He reached his hand out to the crying young girl, pulling her to her feet. After they had out of the alley, he turned and bent so that he was eye level with her. "What a beautiful girl you are," he remarked, wiping away her dark tears.

"Thank you," She whispered, awed. Only when he tilted her face upward did she get a good look at him. He looked to be about early to mid-forties, had a clean-shaven face, long nose, and bright blue eyes. A certain air of kindness seemed to drape around his shoulders like a cape.

"It was my pleasure, young one." He said, smiling. "Now, how about something to eat for you?" She grinned back at him, feeling safe for the first time in what seemed like forever, and very grateful to be able to stuff herself. As they walked down the street, everything grew hazy, and the woman named Raven Darkholme came into consciousness.

And then suddenly, a pounding on her door made her sit up in fright. "What's going on?" she muttered, still a little hazy from the dream.

"Mystique, open up!" She heard Erik's voice demand. What did he want? She got up angrily and pulled open the door.

"What do you want, Erik?" It wasn't enough that the man was staying at her place, he had to clamor for attention like a kid at the worst possible times, such as when she was sleeping.

"You were shouting in your sleep-" he said, then paused. He blushed crimson and looked away. Looking down at herself, Raven realized that she was fully nude.

"Fuck!" She slammed the door in his face and locked it. "You probably enjoyed that!" She yelled angrily. He muttered something unintelligible on the other side of the door.

Sure, she forgot that she slept in the nude, but still. Turning, she rummaged through her drawer to find something to put on. She somehow felt...embarrassed for some reason. It was silly, she had nothing to be embarrassed about. When she was Mystique, she was nude all the time around Erik. _When she was Mystique. _That seemed like such a long time ago.

Pulling on her clothes, she mulled over her dream. Why did she have that dream again? Whenever she dreamed about Erik, it was more about the happy times, like when she had first learned that her mutation was useful. Not about when he found her dirty and starving in an alleyway. Her train of thought was lost, however, when she caught the faint smell of bacon beyond the bedroom door. At that particular moment her stomach chose to let itself be heard.

"I hear you," she muttered darkly, pulling open the door and following her nose to the kitchen, where she spotted Erik busy over a frying pan.

"Would you like some eggs and bacon, dear?" He asked, flipping an egg with a plastic spatula.

"Sure," she muttered, sitting at the table and pouring herself a glass of cranberry juice. She'd almost forgotten that he loved to cook, and was enjoying not having to burn anything or buy something cheap and crappy from one of the few places open at this time.

Erik tipped two eggs and four strips of bacon onto a plate and handed it to her, while putting the same on another for himself. "Isn't this better than chinese?" He asked, smiling. He seemed to have forgotten the incident in her bedroom, or was conveniently forgetting it.

"I wouldn't know Erik, you _ate_ all my chinese food," she murmured.

"My dear, I'm sorry I finished off your dinner, but surely making breakfast every day would make up for that," he said, putting on a pained face.

She couldn't help but smile at that. He knew breakfast was her worst meal to try and prepare. He'd taken over cooking duty when he found out she could burn toast _while_ watching it. It was simply too early for her to do anything like cooking. "Well, if you insist," she said, biting into a forkful of egg. "This is great," she said, her mouth drooling at the flavor. "Where did you get these spices?"

His eyebrow raised. "I assumed the spice rack in the cupboard next to the stove was yours, but I guess it belonged to the previous owners."

"Oh," she said. She never knew those were there, but then again, she hadn't really looked in those cupboards by the stove. It was unlikely she would ever use them. Nevertheless, Erik sure knew how to make an egg, using just the right spices to make it almost float in your mouth. She'd never admit it aloud, but god how she missed his cooking.

"And what are your plans for today, my dear?" he asked, swallowing a rather large bite of bacon.

"I'm working from 11:00 to about 6:00 today, so I'll bring home dinner," she said. She thought that she'd pick up two Italian hoagies from a shop down the street, since she hadn't eaten from there in awhile. "And just what are your plans?"

"I'll be running over to my old apartment and picking up my clothes from the landlord," he said brightly. Looking at him, she realized he was wearing the same clothes he had on yesterday, and for some reason she had that feeling of embarrassment, in the pit of her chest. Shaking it off, she looked at the clock.

"I'd better be off then," she said, rising from her chair. She had to go put on her work clothes and leave soon, otherwise she'd be late. "Thank you for the food Erik," she said, putting the plate and utensils in the sink, reminding herself to do the dishes later when she got a chance.

"Not worth mentioning," he said with a rather sad smile, watching Raven bustle into her room, then rush out moments later. If this was how every day would be, it would be rather boring, he thought, looking around the small apartment.

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Since he didn't want to rush over to his old apartment complex, he figured he'd tidy up for when Raven, _no, Mystique_, came home. He refused to call her that name that her disgusting excuses for parents gave to her. He wanted to call her the name that _he_ gave to her.

After doing _all_ the dishes, vacuuming, and tidying up, he looked at the clock and sighed. He knew the landlord wouldn't be "available" until at least 4:00, so he had two hours to kill, and decided to go out and play chess. It was his favorite thing to do nowadays. Putting on his cap and jacket, he walked out into the park, ready for a good game of chess, even if no one else came to play with him.

Getting everything back was easy enough, but as soon as he got up to her apartment door, he realized he didn't have the spare key with him. Before, such a thing wouldn't have mattered. He'd never needed things like keys before, so it was no surprise that he forgot about it. Setting both his suitcases down, he tried to open the door, just to try. Nothing. Focusing everything he had, he tried again. Still nothing.

It was ridiculous that a little sliver of metal could keep anything from him. It was beyond frustrating. Looking at his watch, he realized he still had a little under an hour before Mystique came back. Putting his hands inside his pockets, he leaned against the wall to wait.

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Raven was the closest to happy she'd come all day. She'd been able to get off work early, and there were two giant steaming italian hoagies in her hand, ready to be eaten. She could almost taste them. Walking up to the door, she noticed someone was hiding in the shadows.

Her mind raced. Who could it be? Was it the X-Men, or even the government? Did the government want something from her? Had they found out about Erik?

Running silently up to them, she caught them by surprise and shoved whoever it was against the door, until a familiar voice groaned.

"Erik!"

"Yes, that would be me, my dear Mystique," his voice complained. A cloud formation that was blocking the moon shifted, and moonlight caught on his face, showing his slightly pained expression.

"What are you doing outside like this?" she asked, reinforcing the pressure she put on him. The air between them seemed to heat up, even though it was a rather chilly night, making her realize just how close to his face she was now.

"As much as I appreciate a woman being this close to me, the brass lion knocker on your door is really starting to dig into my back," he pointed out. She immediately took her hands off him, backed up, and looked away, embarrassed and more than a little bit uncomfortable. To her frustration, however, he stepped closer to her.

"That's better," he said. His hands snaked around to grasp her waist. "I don't think I've been this close to you in months," he whispered, a slight smile on his face. She caught the slight trace of regret in his voice, but chose to ignore it. She stepped out of his hold and went back to pick up the now-cold dinner, and forced him to step aside as she opened the door, walking in as if nothing had happened.

Erik sighed audibly and entered, mentally saying goodbye to the metal knocker, his silent companion for the past hour.

Dinner was cold and silent. Raven thought that Erik could sense her mood, and chose not to say anything. Her emotions were all over the place, from anxious to joyous from his touch, to sour from his confidence at her reaction. The upheaval was just too much for her.

When they were both done, Raven got both the plates and began to wash them, while Erik fiddled around inside one of his suitcases. He brought out a small, expensive looking chess set, and took great care arranging the sleek pieces on the squares, occasionally rubbing one with the sleeve of his shirt to make it shine.

"Would you like to play?" He asked her when she was done.

She looked at the pieces in disgust. "I hate chess," she said, and started to head towards her bedroom, intent on locking herself in it.

"Damn it Mystique, why can't you let me try to atone for what I've done?" He growled suddenly, rising from his seat and moving towards her. He grabbed her shoulders roughly and spun her around. "I'd be willing to spend forever trying to do so, but why can't you just let me?"

Her eyes began to well up with tears against her bidding. It was a foolish display of weakness, but she couldn't control it. Only he could. "I don't want to let you, Erik, but for some reason I acquiesce, and I don't know why." She tried to reach up under his arms to wipe away the tears beginning to form, but he knocked her hand away, and leaned in to kiss her roughly. Caught by surprise, she quickly tensed and broke away.

"I'm not Mystique anymore, Erik, no matter how much you want me to be," she said softly.

"In case you didn't notice, I'm not Magneto anymore, either," he said fiercely.

Nevertheless, she freed herself from his grip and quickly went in her room, shutting the door behind.

Erik heard the lock click loudly, then sighed and went to set up his futon. It was going to be extremely hard to get back into her good graces if just now was a good indication of her feelings.

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Unbeknownst to either of them, a small car outside the apartment ignited with a rumble, and started on its way back to Westchester, New York, driven by a grim looking Logan.

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**A/N:** I'm so glad so many of you like my story so far! I have to apologize though, I had to put in the knight-in-shining-armor Erik part where he first met Mystique, it's how I picture they met. Sure, it's cliché, but I like it. I hope you all noticed the small change in Erik, he's letting his desires be known, and Mystique isn't flat out denying him, either. Ha ha.

Go on, click that review button! It'll really make my day!


	5. Campbell's Soup

**A/N:** I'm so sorry I haven't updated! I've been terribly busy, with applying to college and schoolwork. Forgive me please!**  
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**Dedication:** This is dedicated to AngelofSnow, who has been a great friend to me. Hugs!

**Ch 5.**

Storm paced around her office, eager for Logan to return. She thought for sure the rug beneath her feet was going threadbare, every step seemed to be permanently engraved in the Persian artistry. Each detail was perfect in her mind, right down to every blasted swirl in the pattern. What was taking Logan so long? All she asked was for him to do a little recon on what was going on with Mystique and Magneto! She did not want to be unaware of anything they were plotting, no matter what that arrogant bitch said to deny it.

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Leaning against the cold bedroom door, her thoughts wandered back to when she was so unbelievably happy just to be in his presence. It seemed such a long time ago. All the things she thought about when she was with him, and all the things they did that seemed like innocent friendship, until now. She realized that their friendship had seemingly ended when their romance had taken control. It had seemed like innocent, one-sided puppy love, until he'd started to return her glances, and touch her longer than necessary. It grew and, well, _mutated_ into a full-fledged romance.

_I wish I was the rain. That way, I could touch him and know what he felt. I might be able to know what his heart feels, and how he feels about me..._

God, how naive she was back then. Just thinking about how smitten she was with him when she was younger made her almost physically sick. In fact, she now had a huge headache. Maybe it was from all the time she'd spent crying just now. She knew Erik hadn't heard, she'd made sure to muffle her sobs with pillows.

It brought her back to thinking about before. It was clear he still had affections for her. But what did she feel? Wasn't she still supposed to hate him for throwing her out like yesterday's trash? Maybe it was the change in Erik's demeanor that had softened her hatred. He was no longer the proud, almost arrogant Magneto. That had died when he became human. Just like her. They were both different people. But could their relationship be the same, even if they were so different now?

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Once she'd closed the door, Erik had heard small, sharp intakes of breath, muffled. It was just like her to muffle her tears with a pillow or two. Always trying to be strong. It was one of the things about her he'd often admired, but now she just came across as being stubborn. How could he show her how much he wanted to mend what he'd broken between them? He couldn't do anything now, approaching her in this state was similar to poking an emotionally unstable bear in the eye with a stick. You just couldn't do it.

Pulling the comforter over himself, he laid back on the futon, content to think until he was able to fall asleep. He surely wouldn't be able to sleep yet, especially with her sobs slightly louder. _She must've moved the pillow_, he thought. Sometimes having thin walls were a good thing, but right now was not one of those times, as he was feeling rather exhausted.

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While she was extremely young to be on her own, Erik often thought the young Raven was too smart for the age of fifteen. She learned the martial arts techniques he showed her with ease. Either she was naturally gifted, or wanted to protect herself so that the alleyway scene in which he'd discovered her could never repeat itself. They'd shared meals and almost every minute together, either training or in Erik's study, where he read a multitude of poetry and plays to her. He loved how she laughed; her voice carried a multitude of tones that was so pleasurable to his ears. And her smile, it was one of the few things that could cheer him up when he was feeling down.

Before he knew it, he found he loved this small blue mutant. He realized it when, one day, she had snuck out of his estate to go to the town. By then she'd realized her natural talent for taking the forms of others, and longed for interaction. He remembered how worried he'd been that day. He was pacing back and forth, checking his watch every few minutes. Where had she gone? Had she decided that, now that she could be whoever she wanted to, she'd leave him?

When he'd heard a door close, he went to her. "Is that life out there what you want?" He'd asked angrily. "A life of hiding how beautiful you are just to be with undeserving humans?" He immediately regretted his outburst when her eyes had welled up with tears.

"I'm so sorry," she'd said. He hugged her close, whispering that everything was alright, and that he wasn't mad at her. Sure, he'd been surprised when she molded her body into his, filling the small gap between them, and kissing him on the collarbone. She was nineteen then, so young still, and barely an adult in his eyes. There was a thirty-one year difference between them! He'd asked her then if it truly was what she wanted, thinking it to just be one of his now-daily fantasies.

"Yes," she'd said simply. He cupped her cheek with his hand, and brought her face to meet his with a fiercely avaricious kiss. From then on, they'd been lovers. Often he'd questioned her why she loved him, when she could choose from so many younger and more handsome men.

"Because you see past my scales, and truly embrace who I am. I can love you forever for that alone," she'd replied so many times.

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That morning, Raven woke to a splitting headache. She made herself promise she would never cry herself to sleep, if this was what she got for it. Getting out of bed slowly, she walked over to her dresser and picked out a light purple long-sleeved shirt and jeans. While there was beading along the collar of the shirt, she felt like today should be a day for comfortable clothes rather than fashionable. And since she didn't have to go in to work until later, why not be comfortable?

Opening the door to her room, she walked into the kitchen to pull out a small bottle of tylenol from a cabinet. Popping two in her mouth, she went and rinsed them down with a glass of water from the sink.

Strange, where was Erik? Normally he'd have cooked breakfast already, what with him being the early riser that he was. Going into the living room, she saw the futon was still laid out, with him still sleeping on it. She walked over to him, and saw him clutching the comforter to himself, covered in sweat. Putting a hand to his forehead, she felt him burning up. When she pulled her hand away, his eyes flickered open.

"What time is it?" He asked, his voice a tad hoarse.

"eleven-thirty," she said. He tried to sit up, but she had to help him. It was another reminder of his current state of frailty. "Here," she said. She pulled him up, and helped him to her room. "You'll be more comfortable here." He sank down on the bed gratefully, unable to protest.

Walking back into the kitchen, she got cold medicine out of a cupboard and filled up a new glass of water, taking both to him. When he downed the glass of water, she pulled out another afghan and put it onto him, trying to sweat out his cold. "I'll bring you some tea or soup in a little bit, okay?" She asked.

"Tea, preferably," he said weakly, smiling at her. She felt her heart of ice melt just a little more.

"This is what you get for forgetting the spare key and staying outside in the cold," she accused, pointing a finger at him. He laughed, but it quickly turned into a series of small coughs. When he settled down, she left, closing the door quietly behind her.

Yesterday _was_ extremely damp, and he did sit out there for awhile. Playing chess and waiting on her porch.

She pushed the futon back in and sat on the couch, watching the news for awhile, before something caught her eye. Erik's bag. The temptation overwhelming, she pulled it over and looked through it to see what possessions he had brought. Other than the expensive chess set, everything else looked cheap and secondhand. The clothes smelled strongly of mildew, so she pulled them out and put them in a pile to wash later. Even the books he brought looked careworn. She pulled out _The Once and Future King_ by T.H. White. This was one of her favorites. He'd read it to her all the time, many years ago, about the boy Wart who became King Arthur. Switching off the news, she curled up on the couch and opened the book.

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A few hours later, she was getting off the phone with her boss, feigning illness and calling off work when she heard Erik cry out from behind her bedroom door. Excusing herself quickly, she hung up the phone and went to go check on him. His face was pale and covered in sweat. He was muttering in German, repeating the names Magda and Anya. She knew that his wife and child were long dead, and he was having nightmares of his past, which could only get worse, as he would inevitably dream of the camps in the end. Those were the absolute worst. It broke her to look at his pitiful state.

Going into her bathroom, she warmed a hand towel with water and squeezed all the excess out. Pulling a chair in from the dining room, she took up post next to the bed, and wiped his brow. She didn't know why, but she started to hum softly as she worked. It was a very old song, one her mother sang to her every night when she was small. She didn't remember the name of it, however, just how it sounded on her mother's beautiful voice.

"That's very pretty," Erik said softly. His eyelids fluttered open to look at her. "You used to sing that when you thought I was asleep." She blushed and turned away.

"I never knew you could hear me." Her hand had stopped moving the hand towel, and his moved in to grasp it.

"How could I sleep with such a beautiful voice keeping me awake?" He smiled weakly as she pulled her hand away, dropping the towel. It landed with a soft squelch onto the floor, and was the only sound for a few seconds.

"I need to see if your fever went down, because I'm not sure, but it feels like you're less warm than before," she said hurriedly, picking up the towel and going back into the bathroom. She didn't notice the small chuckle Erik let out at her hasty retreat.

As it turned out, his fever _was_ going down, and he was well enough to try the hot chicken noodle soup that Raven was pouring into a bowl. It was one of the good brands, not the ninety-nine cent cans that she usually bought. Ah, Campbell's soup was the best. She set the steaming bowl onto a wooden tray, also laden with saltine crackers and a large glass of water to prevent dehydration. "Make sure you drink all the broth," she said accusingly, setting the tray before him. She remembered he used to go straight for the noodles and chicken, and left most of the broth.

"I will, Nurse," he said smiling.

"Thank God I don't have to spoon feed you," she muttered under her breath. This made Erik burst into laughter, followed by a small series of weak coughs. They weren't nearly as bad as before.

"And what if you had to spoon feed me?" His blue eyes twinkled with their roguish charm, and he smiled weakly at her.

"I'd let you starve."

"That's not fair," he said. "Well, maybe you could at least stay and keep me warm, because these comforters can only do so much," he grinned, patting the space on the bed next to him.

"If I wanted to get sick, yes, maybe I could do that Erik," she said sourly. "But if I get sick, I can't work, which means I won't get paid. If I don't get paid, we'll both be bums on the street because I couldn't pay rent."

"Well, you'd get to stay home with me," he said brightly. She shot him a dirty look and picked up the tray. Steadying it against her hip, she also picked up his glass of water from her bedside table and set it on the tray.

"I'll be back with some more water."

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He didn't let her hasty retreat bother him. In fact, he found it rather cute. She was acting like her shy younger self, back when she was still in her teens. In her last visit to bring water before he fell back asleep, she told him she appreciated all the cleaning he'd done to her apartment. His chest swelled with hope, and to mask his feeling he joked again that she could share his bed to keep him company. She shut the door loudly on her way out, and he chuckled softly before turning onto his side to go to sleep. He wouldn't find out until the next morning that Raven had snuck back into his room quietly, putting the comforter she'd brought with her on the floor to act as a pallet, and fallen asleep at his side, ready if he would have more nightmares.

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"I think it's worse than we thought," Logan said gruffly. He was unconsciously rubbing his knuckles while sitting on the couch in Xavier's office; his eyes moved with the white-haired mutant that was pacing in front of him.

"Well, thanks to Gizmo we shut down his funding, so they shouldn't be able to do anything, right?" Storm asked.

"For all we know they're receiving funds from members of the Brotherhood that survived."

Storm let out a cry of frustration. "What are we going to do about them?" Logan stroked his chin with his forefinger and thumb.

"I think we should wait and see, for the moment at least."

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**A/N:** I swear, if I don't get more than three reviews on this then I'm going to stop writing. Swear. 


	6. Battle Royale

**Warning:** This chapter is rated 'M', for incredibly detailed **lemon**! (Omg, yes, finally!) This is what you've all been waiting for, isn't it? So don't read this somewhere public, you might just be caught letting off little sighs of pleasure from reading this. This chapter is incredibly detailed, it is not a fade to black scene, and there is not much room for imagination. Ye have been warned!

**Dedication:** This is dedicated to XchocolateChipX, who has been reading both my main stories here on and who continues to wait patiently for my updates. Without people like you, I wouldn't have any reason to continue writing. Also, J.Tyler, watch out for something special I put in here just for you (wink).

**Ch. 6**

Erik looked down at the former mutant now called Raven, watching her sleep soundly on the floor at his side. She seemed to be there in case he needed her in his time of illness. It was as if nothing had changed between them at all. She hadn't sacrificed herself to save him from an inevitable doom, and he hadn't tossed her away because of the simple fact that she'd become human. None of it had ever happened. Until he looked around at the apartment they now shared, and at her. She was still beautiful, oh yes. But she wasn't as beautiful as her true blue form. The form he fell in love with.

She stirred, and he quickly shut his eyes, feigning sleep. He heard her shift around, then the closing of her bedroom door. The open eyes quickly shut again as she walked back in. He squinted, seeing her rooting around in one of her dresser drawers. She pulled off her shirt and bra, and turned slightly as she pulled off her pants. Holding up a skirt, she held it to her waist and turned with it, watching it sway with her hips. Erik could not help but notice how different her breasts were. Sure, they were still large, but they just looked so...alien to the pair he was used to seeing, back when they were still together. The perfectly shaped plum circles were such a stark contrast to her pale skin.

Magneto's eyes widened a fraction.

Eventually she abandoned the dress and donned a pair of jeans instead, followed by a maroon shirt. His eyes shut again as she walked back over towards the door, but this time she tapped him on his exposed shoulder.

"Are you going to sleep all day, lazy?" He pretended to stir, as if from a deep, non-perverted sleep.

"Perhaps, unless you're going to prod me again like that, then I might make an exception." He yawned with feigned sleepiness, and stretched himself out.

"Well, I'll bring in some tea for you, unless you're feeling well enough to have breakfast with me in the kitchen," she said.

"I think I can handle it," he made sure to give her his most devilish smile. It went unnoticed, as she was already closing the door behind her.

She returned a few moments later with a new set of clothes for him to change into, as the ones he was wearing were filthy.

"The tea is ready, and breakfast will be done soon," she said. Leaving him to change, she closed the door behind her as she went off to try not to burn the food too bad. As it turned out, the french toast she was trying to make burned horribly, so she settled for trying toast in the toaster oven. The ham she'd placed alongside the french toast was salvageable, so she was grateful for that. Once the toast was done, she placed that and the ham on two clean plates, and put those side by side on the kitchen counter that also served as a dining table. Two mugs of green tea were placed next to those, along with the utensils.

She smiled to herself and washed her hands, proud that she could make a damn good breakfast for once, even if her first attempt this morning had failed.

Erik walked in, looking less like a hobo than before, with his hair combed and wearing clothes that smelled of cheap detergent rather than mildew. "I take it you succeeded in burning something?" he asked jokingly, pointing to the small heap of blackened french toast in the garbage can.

"If you want to be that way, then fine," she huffed, picking up his carefully arranged plate and motioning to scrape it all into the garbage.

"No, I didn't mean it that way, and you know that," he said, grabbing the plate from her. "I'm delighted that you made breakfast, Mystique." He sat down at the table, almost comically tucking a napkin into the collar of his shirt.

She took her seat next to him with a slight sigh. "Don't call me that," she said absentmindedly, already digging into the ham in front of her.

It seemed that all was instantly forgotten as they shared this meal together, a silent apology was accepted, and for the moment, all was right between the two as they munched on their toast and ham.

After a few minutes, however, Erik ventured to start up a conversation. "When do you work today?"

"Today happens to be my day off," she said. "I guess I get to stay here and make sure you don't do anything detrimental to your health." He chuckled, and took a sip of his tea. It was very bracing, and he felt almost back to 'normal'. The new normal, anyway. "I must admit I'll be glad for the company," he said. She smiled, but as if reminding herself of something, the smile faded as quickly as it had appeared.

A few moments passed, and Erik saw Mystique put down her fork and look at him with a rather odd look to her eye. While he was trying to place the emotion attached to it, she spoke up.

"Erik, if we'd both been humans, and by some strange coincidence we actually met, there would've never been anything between us, would there?"

Now he knew what was bothering her. And it was a terrible question to be bothered by, too.

"I'd like to think, that, for the longest time we had nothing in common other than the fact that we were so alone in the world that we needed each other. But over time I know I grew to love more than just your mutation, I loved you the person for the proud woman you'd become." He reached forward and put his hand on hers, hope fluttering in his chest. "What I'm trying to say is-"

"I know what you're trying to say, Erik," she said softly, pulling her hand away. "But whenever I think about that, my mind always goes back to the FBI trailer, and then I can't get it out of my head, no matter how hard I try."

The rising feeling in Erik's chest swiftly died, like a fluttering candle in a breezy window. "But-"

"Wait, Erik, let me finish," she said firmly. "I know that you told me before how scared you were, and I know, because I was in so much shock too. I forgive you, because I love you right now just as much as before, but I will never, ever, forget what happened."

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Storm sighed for what seemed to be the umpteenth time. She was going through all of the Professor's things, placing most in a box at her feet in order to make room for her things, as it was now her office. It was a losing battle, because she stopped to pick up each of the small items and look them over, usually becoming sentimental and putting it back in its place on the desk. Logan came in just as she was setting the brass monkey paperweight back down on the left side of the desk.

"Yes, Logan, what is it?"

"I have a bad feeling," he said, sitting down on the chintz chair closer to the desk. He eyed the close to empty box, knowing she'd been in here for hours trying to clean out the large oak desk. Except for a few papers, everything reminded her of the Professor, and Logan knew she would feel throwing out his things would truly mean he would never be back to claim them. "I think we should bring the two of them in to find out what they're cooking up."

Storm considered it for a second. "We don't know if they're actually cooking up anything, because Gizmo has been monitoring their phone calls. Nothing goes back to any old brotherhood members, and in fact, the only calls have been to where Mystique works, a cheap little drugstore!"

"That doesn't mean they're not plotting something, maybe all the old brotherhood members are gone, I mean you saw all the ones that were killed at Alcatraz, maybe the rest abandoned the cause, especially after their fearless leader fell."

Storm grimaced. He did have a point, and he knew she hated to let their longtime enemies go unchecked but for a simple phone tap. "Fine, go over there with someone and bring them back, but not yet, wait a little while. You just got back, and it'd be a shame for you to leave again so soon," she said, grinning.

Logan raised an eyebrow.

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About an hour and many failed conversation attempts later, Erik was sitting on a chair in the dining room playing chess, while Mystique was reading "The Once and Future King" on the sofa. Every once in awhile, after making a move or claiming one of the silver pieces, Erik would glance over at Mystique, watching her relaxed form as if expecting a sudden outburst.

Unconsciously, Mystique's legs crossed and uncrossed while she was laying on the sofa, almost as often as she turned a page. Out the corner of his eye, Erik thought he saw her glance at him, but whenever he turned his head, it always seemed to be a trick of the light, because she was still absorbed in the book. It was so damn frustrating, and the air between them seemed thick with either static or the tension that had been building up since breakfast.

Finally, he ventured to break the silence. "I see you're reading my book."

She looked up from the page to glare at him. "So what if I am? You know this is one of my favorites."

"Well, you could have asked," he pointed out. Immediately he knew he made a mistake, as she slapped the book down to give him her full on hate glare.

"You would do well to remember I'm letting you stay here in my apartment, when I have all the right in the world to kick you the hell out of my life, damn it." That made him mad.

"Then why didn't you? You had plenty of chances to either take me out of my misery or kick me out!" He rose from his chair, knocking the chess pieces all over the place, but didn't actually give a damn. Mystique sat up on the sofa and rose to his unspoken challenge.

"I have no fucking clue why I didn't just kill you, or leave you out on the street like a poor _human_," she growled, putting emphasis on the word 'human'. Erik shivered involuntarily, and saw the delight in Mystique's eyes when she knew she struck a chord. "I've come to terms with my humanity, Erik, but you can't adapt so easily, can you? Who's weaker now?"

"Because you were the oh-so strong woman back in that trailer, sniveling like a child, right? You had adapted, all right, right into the sniveling human woman you should have been born!" He spat at her, enjoying how she visibly winced. He wanted to make her hurt for all the cruel things she'd done to him, and knew she'd repay him in kind when she stood up and stalked over to him for a full on battle royale.

"You coward, picking on the time I needed you most, and you left like the cowardly meat sack you are!" Her hand twitched for a second, then swung forward to slap him in the face. Hard. Erik nearly flew backwards, but had had to steel himself to be prepared for it.

"Now who's the coward, resorting to violence when you know I would never hit you! I've killed people for less than that, and you say I'm picking on you!" He grabbed her arms tightly and shook her, keeping her arms pinned to her sides so that she couldn't strike him again. "You have no idea how much I love you, still love you! And you can't let me because you're being too damn stubborn about everything!"

He leaned forward and kissed her on the lips. Like a raging hurricane, it gathered force as time went on, turning viciously avaricious. At first her lips were completely flaccid, and then like the fire in Erik's chest, he felt her explode. Her lips became passionate and returned his kiss, with, if possible, more force. His tongue sought entry to her mouth, and she didn't waste a moment before returning the favor. He felt himself grow hard at her soft moans, she almost melted in his arms as he slowly rubbed his tongue along the roof of her mouth. Slowly and methodically he ran his tongue from the back to the front, then in small circles, just to torture her.

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Mystique was still angry with Erik, oh yes, but for some reason she was losing her grip on the emotion, and it was being replaced by hunger. Rapidly. He let go of her arms and she wrapped them around him to keep from sinking to her knees in pleasure. Her entire body shuddered with a primal victory as she tried so hard not to collapse, but it was difficult indeed. He was entirely supporting her now, and they had been shifting back towards the bedroom without her realizing it. "Oh god, Erik," she moaned, feeling her panties grow oh so wet with desire. And he knew it too, trying to move quicker back into the bedroom.

This was what the aching feeling in her chest for the past few months, because the moment Erik's lips touched hers, the feeling vanished, an inner beast's appetite beginning to be fulfilled.

But she wanted so much more. The door was nearly kicked in, and they fell upon the bed. Mystique was grateful for the added support. She didn't particularly want to christen her new apartment on the floor, but at the moment, anything would do, as long as Erik kept going. He nibbled her earlobes, and quickly moved on to her neck and collarbone. While his hot breath seemed to envelop her core, she tore at the clean plaid shirt, creating a medium-sized rip in it, to which neither of them noticed. If she wasn't feeling like she was about to burst, Mystique thought about biting the buttons off his shirt, but quickly stored the idea in her mind for later.

Erik had moved on to caressing her breasts, while she pulled away long enough to say "By the way, I saw you looking at me naked earlier." The look he gave her nearly made her burst right there, her toes curling, legs stretched out on either side of Erik's incredibly sexy physique.

"I'm glad you saw, then," he half growled, his voice husky with desire.

"You are so...naughty," she half moaned, as he raised one eyebrow and flashed her his devilish smirk. She couldn't stop the moan that rose within her. Nothing could resist the smirk of a god like him. He made a noise deep in his throat that resembled a purr as he pulled her maroon shirt off with excessive force, throwing it aside, and not caring in the least when it smacked the lamp and both fell to the floor with a crash. Like a content virgin on her first night, her bra came to settle on top of the clothes and broken lamp.

In an act to outdo Erik, Mystique's nimble fingers grabbed his shoulders, massaging forward until she reached his pecs, when she leaned forward slightly and licked his nipple, delighting that it was Erik's turn to moan softly, his eyes rolling back into his head for a moment. Reveling in the feel of his curly and silvery chest hair, she kneaded her hands along his still well toned abs. She kept massaging downward until she reached his lower area, slipping her hands inside his pants and grabbing him, but letting go to pull her hands back out. With an "Oh, Mystique," she knew she'd almost hit his breaking point. With an almost inhuman speed, she unbuckled him and leaned forward to grasp his shoulders as he kicked off his pants, followed by his newly washed briefs.

It was harder for him to pull off her pants, so she had to stop her massage and assist him, and in doing so her thigh rolled up against his, and if possible, made his erection harder. He groaned and clenched his teeth, trying not to come that second. His perfect erection directly saluted Mystique, and for the first time in a long time, she felt beautiful. Sure, men before had shown her she was desirable as a human woman. But when she saw them she felt...almost dirty. But with Erik, she almost felt blue again. Already wet with desire, she had to grab the edge of the bed as Erik lowered his tongue down, further, and further, until he had reached her holy grail. "Oh God!" She couldn't take it, didn't know how long she could hold herself in as he slowly ran his tongue up and down her clitoris. She felt herself breaking as he immersed his tongue inside the slippery folds.

"Wait, Mystique," Erik cried out. The apollonian gentleman within him cried out weakly before totally becoming enveloped. "You don't have protection, do you?" It was a weak, half hearted statement, only delaying the inevitable. Both of them knew she didn't have anything, but Mystique was touched that Erik could still hold off this long and still be the gentleman.

"Of course not," she shuddered. "I don't think it really matters anyway." With that, she grabbed his cock with both hands, massaging it, urging it to come inside her. Lowering himself down, he finally thrust into her, slowly, with rising intensity, as her inner muscles went haywire, contracting and relaxing without her conscious effort. Her pleasure rose higher and higher, and she was transported back into the times with Erik before. The times when he'd been the master of magnetism, and she'd been a walking blue mystery. With a primeval groan of triumph, Erik came hard, shuddering violently as he collapsed against her. Her baser needs fulfilled at last, Mystique let out a small sigh of pleasure and lay back onto her pillows, content.

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Storm had been observing Danger Room sessions with the last group of students for the day when Rogue walked in. While the girl was no longer a mutant, Storm felt sorry for her, with nowhere to go, and had offered her a teaching position amongst the younger mutants, to which she gladly accepted.

"Um, Storm, a Dr. Moira MacTaggert called for you, and she said it was urgent," Rogue informed her.

That was odd. Moira was an old friend of Charles', and the only time she had seen her in the past five years was at his funeral. What could she want her for, and why was it so urgent? "Alright class, we're finished a little early today," she spoke into the microphone down to the students below, heaving for breath after their little exercise. Shutting down the program, she heard the jubilant cries of said students, excited to be finished early for a change. Walking out the metallic doors that led her to the lower hallway, she wondered what the famous mutant geneticist had to tell her so badly.

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She had to admit, this morning had to have been the best makeup sex she'd ever had. Mystique had gotten into fights with Erik before, back when they were still leaders of the Brotherhood. Back when they'd been 'gods among insects', as Erik often liked to put it. But this fight had been the most heated yet, and the sex afterwards extraordinary. Leaning over, she took in the sight of a naked Erik still sleeping next to her, weary after their sensual and sweaty exercise. She slipped an arm under the covers, lightly resting it on his rising and falling chest. He was cold to her touch, so she wiggled closer, pulling more of the covers over them both.

During all the movement, Erik had woken up, and he looked at her with a satisfied smile and eyes that seemed to long for more. "Hello there," he grinned.

"Hello there yourself," she said. Her arm lightly massaged his back, and his own snaked underneath hers to rest on her abdomen.

"You know, we should probably get protection from now on, if every day is going to be like this." Mystique laughed, but it faded quickly as she remembered a time when the two of them were actually trying for children. The look of concern on Erik's face made her sorry she'd lingered on that memory, but before she could start a new subject, he spoke up. "Are you remembering the time before?"

"Yes, Erik, I was." Back when they had first started their relationship as lovers, Mystique had been glad to carry Erik's child. Until one day she collapsed, that is. It turned out that her pregnancy was an ectopic pregnancy, meaning the embryo had clung to her fallopian tube, and she hadn't realized it until her tube burst. Of course Erik was so concerned for her, he rushed her to Xavier's school, with the only doctors there who would treat a blue pregnant mutant. While they had saved her life, they had lost the tube and the baby, meaning her chances of pregnancy again were halved. They had tried at pregnancy, and failed numerous times. Why would this time be any different for them? Maybe Erik's genes were too good for the likes of her. Well, that's what she used to think, anyway.

As if sensing her depressing train of thought, Erik leaned in and kissed her softly on the mouth, a worried look in his eyes. "You had nothing to do with what happened, and you know that, right?" He continued when her expression didn't change. "When I first realized I loved you, I wanted to keep you all to myself, because you were an angel forced to live among those who saw you as a demon. Well, nothing has changed at all, except the unworthy opinions of those we live amongst," he said chuckling.

"Even if I'm damaged goods?" Her face was entirely serious.

"I love you more because we tried, my dearest." He saw her chin tremble and her eyes well up with tears, and hugged her closer to him. She laid her head to rest just underneath his chin, with which he nuzzled her. "I just want you to know, Mystique, that I love you so much, no matter if you're human, mutant, or alien. It doesn't matter to me one bit, because you're the person I love the most in this world, don't ever think your skin or genes can have any effect on that."

Her tears came faster, with small sobs wracking her body until he steadied her with his large hands. "Oh Erik, I-" she uttered between sobs.

"I know," he crooned softly, still holding her close to him.

* * *

A/N: Holy Shit! This was the longest chapter I've ever, ever written. EVAR. The total word count for this chapter was over 4,000 words, when my normal chapters are about half of this. You better enjoy it, dammit! 


	7. Checkmate in the Park

Disclaimer: You should know all this by now. I don't own anything but the little plotbunny.

Dedication: This is dedicated to ratdogtwo, who has reviewed every chapter and always asked politely for me to hurry my ass up and update. Cheers, this one's for you!

Okay, we've broken past the hard shell, to find that Mystique just needs some lovin' after going through so much. Wouldn't you?

Warning: Somewhat explicit sex scenes here folks (Omg, yes!) So ye be warned!

Chapter 7:

To Erik, these past few weeks had been a dream of sorts. Mystique took to earlier shifts in the morning, and would be home during the late afternoon and night. When she came home, they could barely keep their clothes on. It was as if a plug had been pulled, releasing all of their pent up emotions and sexual energy. And Erik was starting to run out of shirts.

All the time they had been apart, from the time she'd been captured until now, they had remained chaste, each lonely in their beds, separated once by race and distance. But they had come together again, eager to see the other, even if the last time they parted had been the worst moment of their relationship. To Erik, that proved that they truly were meant for each other. If they could both get past his awful mistake and still love each other this much, human or not, then it was a sure sign that they could get past anything together. He was sure of it.

When they weren't making up for lost time in the bedroom, they were getting caught up on old shared hobbies, Erik reading aloud to her and their discussing of days long gone, including those in which he had a fortune at his command, and now when they were both depending on her meager salary.

A few days ago, when they were sleeping, he'd felt Mystique jump suddenly, and cry out in fear. Rolling over, he saw her looking at her hands, crying silently. "What's wrong?" He'd asked, worried.

"They're different." She was referring to her hands. "I had a dream that I'd become human, you'd become human, and we'd lost all that was good. And it was true, it was true," she cried, small sobs tearing at her thin frame.

"That's not true, because we gained it back," he said softly, pulling her to him in a comforting embrace. It had taken most of the night to calm her down, but Erik knew that the loss of sleep was worth it. She was worth it, and he'd told her so. Sure, the next morning she'd rolled her eyes and laughed, but he was sincere, and he guessed a part of her knew that. It was the way she put clothes on in front of him, or the way she'd invite him into the shower, or the cute way she tried to cook for him. All of it made his heart feel whole again, something that he thought wasn't possible for a long time.

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Mystique thought she was getting fat on sex alone. It was like an addiction to chocolate, and she just couldn't stop. The way he radiated lust for her, clenched his butt to make her giggle, or the way he still couldn't get enough of her, as if seeing her each day was something new and exciting...it just made her sigh with pleasure at the thought, and regret all the time they'd lost making up. This morning she'd taken a shower and she wasn't even dirty, which made it the fifth time this week. And it was only Wednesday! The water bill was going to be outrageous, she thought wryly. Still, it was worth it.

Having been able to leave work early, she came home to find Erik reading the newspaper. "What are you doing inside on such a sunny day?" He glanced at his cheap watch.

"It's past four," he said, eyebrows raised.

"That gives us enough time to go out and enjoy the daylight. We should enjoy it, since I come home later than this, and usually in the dark," she pouted. "Maybe you could teach me to play chess again, on one of the boards in the park," she grinned. Chess was his weak spot. She knew it, and he knew she knew it.

"Fine, we can go and get some fresh air, but don't forget to bring a key," he warned, not forgetting the last time he went to the park.

"Don't worry," she said with a laugh. "I won't forget mine."

With that, they left together, holding hands loosely as they walked to the park and sat down at one of the tables. They hadn't gotten very far into the lessons when Mystique had started to regain her old skill, and was challenging Erik for real.

"Aha! I've taken your queen," he said, grinning in triumph, teasing her by waving the queen almost in her face before setting it at the top of his pile.

"Don't think you've won yet," she laughed, and, on impulse, leaned over the board and kissed him. She began to pull away, but with an insistent 'no' from him, she went deeper into the kiss, and his leg started to rub against hers.

But their moment of bliss quickly turned sour. Under the public eye, different relationships would always be looked down upon, like the huge age difference between Mystique and Erik.

"Disgusting!"

"End it with him, you home wrecker!"

"She's only in it for money, old man!"

Watching people jeer at them was swift to kill the mood. Standing up, she pulled Erik up beside her. "Let's take a walk over there," she said, nodding to the jogging path that led into an area thick with bushes and trees, and perfect to continue where they'd left off.

Away from the scoffing of the public, Mystique gave a giggle and took off at a run, hiding behind a tree and comically peeking out to see him pursuing her. "Can't catch me!" She called, running slowly on purpose. When he caught her, he grabbed her in a fierce embrace.

"I can always catch you," he grinned.

She reveled in the feeling of his arms around her, the contours of his body, the press of his thigh against her legs. When he made a movement away from her, as if to release her from pressing against the tall tree, her arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him to her again. She felt, rather than saw his smile of pleasure as he leaned down and gently licked her on the cheek. Sliding her own tongue to meet his, they began to sink to the ground, each knowing what to unzip or slide off like an expert. The feeling of the grass beneath her and Erik on top of her was an interesting sensation, to say the least, as she dug a twig out from under her back, and concentrated on Erik once more.

Even in the middle of nature, Erik knew how to please her. He playfully explored her ears, neck, and collarbone with his tongue, leaving her begging for more.

Wanting to share some of the fun, she leaned upward, stroking the area under his chin with her own experienced tongue. He moaned softly, urging her to keep going, so she alternated between sucking and nibbling at the supple flesh, eventually moving upward to his ears. Erik's eyes rolled back into his head in pleasure, and he pulled her against his chest, her breasts pressing against his large frame.

She felt his erection, hot and throbbing, bear down onto her stomach. Already wet with desire, she made sure to let him know it, whispering, urging, pleading softly in his ear.

Looking at the goddess below him, hair spread around her like a halo and slick with perspiration, it was almost too much. He thought he could become intoxicated with the sight and smell of her alone, not even including the sweet taste of her. She pulled back slowly, taking one of his nipples in her mouth and sucking gently. Erik had never experienced pleasure the way his Mystique could dish it out. Moaning, his vision dimmed as more blood flowed to his lower regions. Fighting the urge to take her so quickly, he kissed her, moving down until he had kissed each perky nipple. Hand massaging one, teeth and tongue gently caressing the other, her moans were beautiful in his ears. For an instant he thought he heard her moan sound like more than one person, the many tones of a former Mystique. But he was mistaken.

"Why did you stop?"

"I was stunned by your ever present beauty," he whispered.

And it was true, he was completely enthralled. Had it been the glimmer of yellow he thought he saw in her eyes? No, it was Mystique, the form didn't matter to him anymore. "Stunning goddess, you charm me even in your mortal coil," he said huskily. Her eyes shone with gratitude, and nothing more need be said. He barely began to touch her at the base between her legs when she cried out in pleasure, hands grabbing onto his back. When he began to suck and tickle her with his tongue, it took even less time for a second, and then third orgasm.

Repositioning himself, Mystique took advantage of the opportunity and lifted her legs to come and wrap around his lower torso. Erik couldn't remember a time before when they had had this much fire in their relationship, until now that is. While he would never describe himself or Mystique as so-so lovers, their opportunities for such passions became scarce.

While his rhythm was tortuously slow at first, he gradually picked up speed, and was thanked in the form of Mystique's guttural gasps and moans. Pulling himself out completely, he drove into her hard and repeated this not once, but twice. At last he came hard, pounding into her with ferocity he didn't know he had. His cry of 'Mystique' had turned into what resembled an animal roar, and he heard her answer it. He collapsed, rather than settled on top of her, and the sounds of their gasps were mingled among the laughter of children and sounds of wildlife.

"I can't think of a better use for a park," he said after recovering a bit. Her laughter came in short breaths, showing him just how exhausted he could make her.

Mystique broke the silence while they were redressing. "You broke my bra," she said, amused. And it was true, he saw, looking over. The fabric in between the two cups had been torn, one of the metal wires beginning to poke out, which left her with what looked like two purple clams that adorned censored mermaids. "I'm sorry, I guess I'll have to buy you a new one, one with less to get in the way," he said, poking the padding.

She laughed. "I don't really care about the bra, but how am I going to make it back to the apartment with it like this?"

He caught where she was going and grinned. "Well, you could always carry it with you, a public monument to our love..."

"Yeah, you wish," she said, pushing him good heartedly.

In the end, she stuffed it under a bush and went bra-less back to the apartment. Looking at her, Erik realized that it definitely showed, and that anyone who saw them before and now would be able to pick out the difference. He found that he didn't care, but worried that Mystique might be harmed for it. After all, he had nothing to lose so late in his life, but she still had a reputation to build in this community, and becoming known as a whore or home wrecker wasn't how he wanted her to be seen by anyone. He tried to keep his distance a little, but not so much to damage his pride. Whether she noticed or not, she took his hand in hers, gripping tightly.

"I need you," she whispered under the glares of many as they wove in between the chessboards, swiftly giving him a peck on the cheek. A warm feeling spread throughout his chest, the joy that his Mystique had not lost her audacious personality, even under the pressure of the public eye.

The moment they stepped back into the apartment they became a tangled mass of kisses and loving murmurs, just content to be with the other and nothing more. Erik hadn't had that feeling in years, like they were exploring the other for the very first time.

Settling on the couch, Mystique was content just to lay molded with Erik. The three words he whispered meant nothing, she told herself, it was his gentle caress and loving embrace. But she knew it was a lie, she loved hearing him speak those words. She also loved the fact that she could repeat them, and know that she was completely sincere.

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"So, what do you want to do now?" She asked him as he kissed her at the base of her neck gently.

He thought about it for a moment. "I want to make some tea." She lifted her head to turn and look him in the eye.

"You know tea has a lot of caffeine, right?" It was already nine-thirty, and they usually went to bed after ten. "You'll be up all night."

"My dear, that's the idea."

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That night was going perfect. Erik had decided to do the grocery shopping, so Mystique was left with the house to herself for most of the afternoon on her day off. She planned on doing everything perfectly, there could be no room for error. She'd gone out earlier to a spirits store and bought a case of Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir California 2004, which seemed like the best they had, and gone shopping quickly at another store to get the ingredients for dinner.

She knew she wasn't as good a cook as Erik, but she put her entire will to making this dinner succeed. The bacon was diced, chicken browned perfectly, and not a single mushroom or onion burnt. There was a moment where she thought she'd forgotten the thyme and bay leaf, but found them at the bottom of the last grocery bag.

After a painstakingly long time of cooking the chicken, preparing the sauce, and everything else, it had taken her almost an hour. It was a record for how long she'd ever been in a kitchen, let alone cooked something for the entire duration. She divided the chicken onto two of her best plates, poured the sauce over them, and heated the pan again to pour in the wine. While stirring the wine, she splashed some onto her hand, burning it. A cold hand towel and a few curses later, the dinner was set out, two beautiful examples of Coq au Vin served with a crusty bread. All of the lights had been turned off, and Mystique had gathered all the candles she could find and lit them, trying to make a somewhat romantic atmosphere, just to surprise him. Erik walked in as she was pouring the wine into her best wineglasses.

"What is this?" He asked, setting the bag of groceries down in surprise. Clearly, he had not been expecting her to cook.

"It's dinner, of course," she said with a laugh. "What else could it be?" She helped him to put away the groceries, and put in one of the only CDs she owned. Seconds later Classical music streamed out, reminding her that the only reason she'd kept the CD was because it reminded her of Erik.

"You seem to have gone through a lot just to make dinner," he said, pointing at the puffy area in which she'd burned herself.

"I just felt like being a little extravagant," she said, grinning. "Besides, when was the last time someone made you Coq au Vin?" He thought for a second.

"It's been years," he said, in awe of his realization.

"Good," she said, grinning.

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"I don't think I've eaten food this good in ages," he said finally, putting his fork down. "And I absolutely loved the Pinot Noir. You did a fantastic job, my dear." He leaned over, kissing her lightly on the cheek.

"Thank you, Erik, but I had an ulterior motive, I must confess," she said, sighing. He took her hand in his.

"My dear, if I didn't think there was a reason for all this extravagance, I'd be more than a little foolish. Tell me, my goddess, what is troubling you?" Her hand squeezed his tightly, and she took a big breath.

"Erik, I'm over a week late," she said, exhaling audibly. She'd been unsure of what to do, what with her being already over thirty, and not having much of an income. But she knew she should tell Erik first. She looked at him, and saw he was taking it extremely well. He was only a little pale, and his eyes weren't bulging nearly as much as she'd anticipated.

"I assumed we'd taken precautions," he said slowly. He'd gone out and made a show out of buying the super sized pack of condoms at the same drugstore that she worked at. Not only had she been a little embarrassed whenever he raised an eyebrow at her, but she'd also been more than a little aroused behind the counter, especially when he smirked and whispered "I think I'll be back soon."

"Well, we did take precautions, except for that first time, and the time in the park, the time after that, and the occasional shower here and there." She should have realized all the chances they'd had, but wasn't it harder for her to get pregnant now, being over thirty and only having one set of ovaries? Hadn't they tried even more back when they'd actually wanted a family?

"I'm going to be a father again," he said softly, awed.

"That's all fine for you, but I've never been a mother, and I'm actually going to be doing everything!" She said, a little panicky. "What if something goes wrong again?" She stood up and paced, worried.

"I have faith in you," he said firmly, rising to stop her. He placed his hand on her stomach, as if he could feel his future child kicking in the womb. "I have no doubt that you will be a terrific mother, and I want you to know that I love you so very much, and nothing will ever change that."

A/N: Okay, I know I did horrible when it came to the dinner section. I have absolutely no knowledge of wine whatsoever, as I'm not of legal drinking age! Tell me what you think about this chapter! I trust you, there are many twists and turns ahead!


	8. The Rash

**Disclaimer:** You should know all this by now. I don't own anything but the little plotbunny.

**Dedication:** This is dedicated to beHPhappy, for all of the kind reviews. Cheers!

**Chapter 8**

As it turns out, it was a false alarm. Mystique felt more than a little stupid for telling Erik before she was sure. He reassured her time and again that she was just being considerate of him, but she saw a hint of disappointment in his eyes. Hell, part of her was a little disappointed, too. But to avoid any more instances like that from occurring again, she made sure to obtain proper birth control the next week. Erik saw the package, and the way she saw him looking at it made her feel lower than she had been in months. He, however, didn't act any different from his normal loving self, and this, if possible, made her feel even worse.

"I know you're disappointed, and I'll admit, the idea was a little enthralling," he admitted one night, after trying to become intimate with her and failing. "But I like the idea more that I can enjoy what we have for the time we have it. Do you hate me for that?" He asked softly. She turned to face him, having been lying with her face opposite his.

"No," she whispered, eyes welling up with tears. "Never."

He hugged her close, and they remained molded together under the covers, letting all their emotions out for who knew how long.

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"Alright, thank you, Moira." Storm hung up on Moira MacTaggert, an old colleague and friend of the Professor's. And the news she relayed was definitely not good. Not good at all.

"Logan, can you come to my office right away?" She spoke into the intercom that ran throughout the school. Within minutes, he appeared in the doorway to the office.

"You rang?"

She smiled, but it quickly faded. "You might want to sit down for this, it's pretty intense." He gave her an odd look, and came over to sit on one of the comfortable chintz chairs in front of the desk.

"Okay, shoot."

Storm took a breath. "It was true, Moira just confirmed it. The cure isn't permanent for most mutants, maybe even all of them. They confirmed it at Worthington, all the test subjects are regaining their powers." She exhaled audibly.

"What about Rogue?" Logan asked, his eyebrows knitted together in concern. Storm knew he cared about the younger mutant, but she had to admit, it did bother her occasionally.

"She'll probably regain her powers soon, but we should focus on Magneto and Mystique." Logan's head snapped up.

"What about them?"

"There's a good chance they'll regain their powers as well, and we have to monitor them closely. I want you to go out there and watch them. I'll give you money for a hotel room, and you can take Bobby or Peter with you if you think it's necessary. Gizmo will continue to listen to their phone calls, and if he hears anything I'll give you the word to bring them back here." Logan nodded.

"When do you want me to leave?"

"As soon as possible."

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Merely a week and a half on the pill, Mystique was almost regretting it. They had turned somewhat reckless, and thus had 'adventures' twice more in the park. She thought she picked up poison oak or something in **that** area, and was constantly itching herself. It was embarrassing, especially while she was at work, and had to subtly go about it, or else driving herself crazy by not scratching. She tried various types of creams, since, after all, she did work at a drugstore. Nothing helped. What was funny was, Erik didn't catch it. They'd had sex twice after the park and he didn't get anything, while the itchy rash continued to spread down her legs.

She'd considered going to a doctor about it, but decided to wait until after she was done taking the pill, in case it might be a side effect. After all, she'd never seen a rash with grayish bumps before, so perhaps it was just a side effect, and would go away. That didn't make it any less itchy, however.

"Erik, are you sure you're not itchy, at least a little?" She was desperately clinging onto the hope that it was still something like poison oak.

"My dear, if my skin was irritable and itchy I'm sure I'd be the first person to know, and I'm not," he replied, somewhat moodily.

"What's wrong with you?" She asked, frowning. It wasn't like him to be so petulant.

"I have an enormous headache, and nothing seems to help," he muttered, rubbing his forehead.

"Didn't the medicine help?" She'd seen him take a few tylenol at least an hour ago, so wouldn't that have done anything?

"It didn't do anything at all, and it feels like it's getting worse." He groaned, standing up and heading towards the bedroom. "I'm going to lie down for a bit." He trudged into the bedroom and shut the door behind him, leaving Mystique sitting on the couch, frowning with concern.

She waited about twenty minutes, flipping through his book until she heard Erik's light snores from the other room. Getting up slowly, she tiptoed into the bedroom, and eased into bed next to him. He stirred when she stroked his arm, but didn't wake. She draped her arm over his, and wiggled closer so that she could easily smell his musky cologne. With a light sigh, she nodded off, content.

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"Did you have a headache too?" He asked, seeing her eyes fluttering open. He'd awoken refreshed, and seen her curled up next to him. It was so adorable, and she did it even though he'd been in a terrible mood most of the day.

"No, but did yours go away?" She asked, smiling up at him as he cupped her cheek with his hand.

"It did indeed. Maybe all I need is you."

The tender moment was ruined, however, by her cursing and itching herself angrily. "Damn rash," she muttered darkly, scratching the insides of her legs.

"I really think you should see a doctor about that," he said. He pushed back the covers, and inspected the area for himself. "Why do you think your rash is gray looking?" he asked, fingering the small raised bumps on her skin. They were dark grayish in color, and had spread from between her legs all the way down to her knees.

"I don't know," she confessed. "Maybe it's just..." trailing off, Erik looked up to see her staring at her hand in wonder. "I'm getting it on my hands now," she said lightly.

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It was true. Within a week, the rash had spread on the backs of her hands and was beginning to creep up her arms, much to her irritation. While she was outside the apartment she had to wear long gloves, to avoid any odd looks. Erik hadn't had sex with her during that time, and she was worried he was shirking away from intimacy because of the rash. Slightly depressed, she spoke little and ate even less. Whether Erik noticed or not, he decided to not say anything, making her even more depressed. A few days later at work, however, he surprised her.

"Raven, you have a phone call," her manager called over, an irritated look crossing her face. It said plainly 'You know you shouldn't use the store's phone line for personal calls, make it quick and get back to work.' She sighed, stepping down from the stool where she had been stocking various sinus medications.

"Hello?" She knew it was Erik, she didn't know anyone else who might possibly knew she worked there.

"My dear, I hope you don't mind, but I've taken the liberty of buying a few 'supplies' for tonight, so maybe we can get on with the plan we talked about before?"

Her eyes widened. They'd talked about planning a special romantic evening for sex, but it had been awhile ago, and she'd thought he'd forgotten all about it. "You really want to go through with it?"

His laugh was loud on the other end. "Of course I do! I've been waiting for the right opportunity, to 'strike' at the right time, per say...but do you think we'll need to take extra precautions?" He meant condoms, as she could just buy them in the store before she left work.

"No, I think we'll be fine with the supplies we have," she said, wishing he could see the grin on her face.

"Alright, I'll get ready for when you come home, so make sure you hurry." He chuckled. She promised she would, and hung up, the smile still on her face as she went back to stocking the shelves.

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"Holy shit." Storm was listening to the recording of the conversation between Magneto and Mystique. Her mouth was wide open, listening to the conversation played over and over by an annoyed looking Gizmo; he'd pressed the play button quite a few times already. "This is big," she said quietly.

Pulling out her cell phone, she dialed the number for the phone she'd given Wolverine, and spoke hurriedly into it, explaining everything she'd just heard in the conversation between Magneto and Mystique.

"I need you to bring the both of them in now, before they have a chance to do anything. And be careful." He grunted on the other end of the line, and hung up. Good, at least now she knew Logan would get them and intercept on any plot they might have had, doing who knows how much damage and mischief.

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"What the fuck?!" Mystique had been in a cheerful mood until a milisecond ago, where she walked in to her apartment, door wide open, and belongings strewn around. "Erik?" She called, walking further into the apartment. When no one answered, she panicked, looking around. Did the FBI come for Erik? Or was it someone else, realizing they'd found where the fugitive Magneto had been hiding?

She heard a movement in the bedroom, and, tiptoeing, went up by the door frame, ready to hit the intruder as soon as he exited the bedroom. Large feet walked solidly across the room, and she prepared to strike, until he walked through the door frame.

"Wolverine?!" She dropped her fists, shocked.

Seeing her, she grabbed her by the arms and pushed her against the wall. "Stay quiet and don't struggle," he said gruffly.

"Where's Erik?" She said, panic in her voice.

"I'm here," he called, walking out of the bedroom, being pushed rather rudely by the boy she recognized as Bobby Drake. His lip was bleeding sluggishly.

"What's this all about?" She demanded, struggling against Logan's hold on her.

"Look, I'm just doing what I was told, okay? The two of you are supposed to be brought in," he said, reinforcing the pressure he put on her against the wall.

"But why?" She asked angrily. "We haven't done anything worthy of punishment from the oh so holy X-Men, so why do we need to be 'brought in' like a pair of animals?"

He said nothing, but instead pulled her away from the wall, trying to take her in the direction of the car.

"How long are we to be there?" She demanded.

"As long as we say so," he growled. "So probably awhile."

"So can we at least get some clothes?"

He let them pack, reluctantly. He stood guard over Mystique while she packed her things, Bobby guarding Erik. A sense of dread was slowly overpowering her. Erik took his bag, which contained all of his meager belongings, and she a small duffel that had clothes and other necessities. She had a feeling that they wouldn't return, and left a note on the landlord's door saying she would be gone for over a week, and left the payment for next month inside the envelope.

Getting into the small car, Mystique silently said goodbye to their apartment, having a feeling that they would never return, or be the same.

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A/N: So sorry for the long wait! I hope you all liked it, as it's a very eventful chapter! It took awhile to write, it was so chock full of details. Sorry! 


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